Having fallen a little bit in love with some of their designs on Instagram we caught up with Leicestershire designer, Mark, the man behind 18forever. Specialising in greetings cards as well as t-shirts and hoodies, the designs are stocked in the fabulous Ginger Kate shop in Market Harborough as well as being available online.
On a recent visit to Market Harborough specially to visit Ginger Kate, household name radio DJ and tv presenter Jo Whiley even made sure she took home one of Mark’s “Life is too short to listen to Coldplay” t-shirts with her. What can we say? She’s got taste.
When did you first start 18forever?
I first started 18forever around a year ago. My sister-in-law had just launched ‘Ginger Kate’ in Market Harborough and this inspired me to begin to design some t-shirts that would be sold there. As time has gone on I have started to expand the range, although this has been a slow process as I have been working around my day job and other commitments.
What inspired your first designs?
The inspiration for my early designs came mainly from my love of music and not taking life too seriously, combining those 2 elements seemed the obvious choice. It was also those elements, along with a steadfast refusal to grow old (ish) gracefully that inspired the business name of 18forever.
What is your favourite design that you’ve come up with?
As it was the first design I came up with I would have to go with ‘Life is too short to listen to Coldplay’ as my favourite…..it also happens to be 100% true.
What else do you design other than greeting cards?
From the initial t-shirt designs and Hoodies I expanded the range to A4 prints and greeting cards…a range that i’m continuing to expand continuously.
What other designers do you most admire?
I have to say that I hadn’t ever really thought about which other designers I admire but since starting this venture and attempting to establish a social media presence for it, there are a number of companies out there that I do, covering various product styles. Companies such as Blossom and Wood, Crybrand and inaugural season. Local furniture designer WC74 furniture also does some awesome stuff and is worth a look.
What are the future plans for 18forever?
As the business is still very small my future plans are to expand the range, improve our online visibility and also hold pop up stall on Camden and Spitalfields markets.
We hear that Jo Whiley recently got her hands on one of your designs, which other celebrities would you like to see wearing them?
As a Leicester born lad and City fan i’d love to see the Kasabian lads in one of my designs, I’ve met Tom before at the King Power and he was a very nice guy…on top of that I’d settle for Dave Grohl and Chris Martin.
What sort of music do you listen to when you’re being creative?
Music wise I like a bit of everything from 80’s synth pop like Depeche Mode and OMD to Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Yeah Yeah Yeah’s, QOTSA and Band of Horses.
Where can people buy your range of products?
Our range is currently available at Ginger Kate in Market Harborough and at our Etsy online store 18foreverUK. We hope to be available in more retail outlets in the very near future.
You can follow 18forever on Instagram and buy their products online through Etsy.